Catawba County -- July 31, 2026: Sheriff’s investigators have confirmed that the body of missing Hickory resident Robin M. Doyle has been located in a wooded area of northeastern Catawba County. Her death is currently being investigated as a homicide.
Doyle, 58, was reported missing on Tuesday, July 28, from her home on 33rd Street NE in Hickory’s Crestmont community. Her next of kin have been notified.
Authorities have identified 54-year-old Leroy Allen Loper, a former co-worker of Doyle, as the primary suspect in her disappearance and death.
According to search warrants, Doyle’s father reported her missing Tuesday morning after discovering her car and cell phone left behind, the back door of the home open, and displaced retaining wall blocks along the walkway. Investigators also recovered zip-ties in the yard—evidence that was later linked to Loper’s vehicle.
Area license plate recognition cameras and witness statements flagged a 2015 red Kia Optima leaving Doyle's neighborhood at high speed early Tuesday. Search crews—comprising the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office, the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI), and the FBI—focused their efforts on northeastern Catawba County, ultimately locating Doyle’s body in a wooded area near the Catawba River below the Oxford Dam.
Loper, a registered sex offender with prior felony convictions for first-degree kidnapping and second-degree forcible sexual offense, was taken into custody in Surry County on unrelated sex offender registry violations. He is currently being held at the Catawba County Detention Facility under a $200,000 secured bond as formal charges regarding the homicide remain pending.
The Catawba County Sheriff’s Office has not yet released the official cause of death. Additional media updates are expected as the investigation continues.
Investigators are urging anyone who saw or interacted with Leroy Loper or his red 2015 Kia Optima between July 27 and July 29 in Catawba County, Surry County, or surrounding areas to contact the Sheriff’s Office at 828-464-3112 or the tip line at 828-466-2847.